So, after all the action and anxiety things ended up exactly where they were before the weekend in the ‘four into two won’t go’ fracas.
With four to play Bournemouth or Watford need to slip up and Boro look like having to three point the lot for an automatic slot.
Winning without playing that well was the watchword for all the top four and The Reds duly made harder work of putting away The Millers than necessary.
But Boro got the job done and eventually secured the all-important result with some comfort.
Evans’ men massed in two banks of four as narrow as their ambition and, augmented by one of their front two on most occasions, frustrated Boro until the break.
Karanka’s side looked like they’d shackled themselves with their unease and, by narrowing their own game by design, played into the trap set for them.
After the break, Tomlin took a hand and unlocked the Rotherham defence twice – once for his own benefit and then for Bam-Bam’s.
Both takes were classy with the number tens taking the honours for the day but the floodgates didn’t then open and both teams seemed settled with the score.
Then came the added time spot kick ta-ra-ra with Kike – who’d won the pen and desperate for a drought breaker – trying to snatch the responsibility from the designated taker, Bamford, in an unprofessional spat.
Whilst one can empathise with Kike’s desire to score there can be no sympathy for his actions or understanding for the misguided chanting and booing from some in the North Stand as Bamford stepped up.
As he admitted afterwards, Bam-Bam didn’t help matters with a tame shot that Martinez saved with ease but it the two made up with a warm down man hug.
It’ll be interesting to see whether Karanka will be so easily appeased especially since Kike’s performance in the rest of the game hardly earned the right to play Prima Donna.
Given his pre-match comments about the Riverside support the Spanish striker might not be the only target to earn a Karankagram with booing at the break adding to the dim disloyalty near the close.
Overall, it was good to see Dani Ayala back at the heart of Boro’s best back line and I was glad to hear that his subbing on seventy was precautionary.
Patrick Bamford celebrates
Forshaw did well enough in the Leadbelter role to retain it for the Wolves game and Boro’s head coach kept Clayts from a tenth yellow risk by subbing him with the game won.
It was good to get Boro’s Ravanelli equalling top scorer on the sheet again with Tomlin notching and assisting but it would have been even better had goals been got from elsewhere in the team too.
Boro can’t afford for goal difference or goals scored to play a part in the final reckoning but it seems an age since anyone from the back seven has notched.
With rare exceptions, the same applies to the front four and that puts an immense responsibility on Bamford and simplifies the defensive issue significantly for opponents.
Despite defeat at St. Andrew’s on Saturday, Wolves will be a different proposition to Rotherham at The Riverside tomorrow evening.
Whilst Boro got away with a lack of width and Bam-Bam’s positional non-preference last time out neither can be afforded against Jackett’s side, going forward or defending.
Whilst I hope that Karanka can start with the same back seven for the second game in a row I think that Bamford should replace Kike up top and one of the wingers come in for the flank of the attacking three on the other side to Adomah.
The Tomlin conundrum continues, given that he flits in and mostly out of games but there are things he can do and provide that no-one else can.
On balance, I’d keep the number ten in the number ten role but Vossen must be in contention too.
This time, let’s hope ‘town and team together’ is all inclusive for the Riverside fans and everyone on the pitch!
C’mon Boro!!
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